Reported Speech

Example:

• Direct Speech: Sita said "I am not well"
  
  
• Reported Speech: Sita said that she was not well.

We must remember the following rules:

1) Inverted commas are not used in reported speech.


2) That is used when you are changing a statement into direct speech.

Example:

• Direct Speech: Ram said, "I come to school everyday".
  
  
• Reported speech: Ram said that he came to school everyday.
  
  
  

3) When changing an interrogative sentence that is not used. If the question does not begin with an interrogative word (what, who) use of 'if' or 'whether' is required.

Example:

• Direct Speech: "Have you finished your physics notes?" Ram asked Shyam.
  
  
• Reported speech: Ram asked Shyam if/whether he had finished his physics notes.
  
  
• Direct Speech: "Will you listen to me?" asked his mother.
  
  
• Reported speech: His mother asked him if he would listen to her.
  
  
• Direct speech: "Should I go home?" wondered the boy.
  
  
• Reported speech: The boy wondered whether he should go home.
  
  
• Direct speech: "Can you come?" she asked.
  
  
• Reported speech: She asked if he could come.
  
  
• Direct speech: "Is this yours?" she asked.
  
  
• Reported speech: She asked if that was hers.
  
  
  

4) Simple Past tense changes to past perfect when we change direct to indirect/reported speech.

Example:

• Direct speech: Umang said, "I went to school yesterday".
  
  
• Reported speech: Umang said that he had gone to school the previous day.
  
  
• Direct speech: Meera asked him, "Can you come?"
  
  
• Reported speech: Meera asked him if he could come.
  
  
• Direct speech: "I drink water after every meal" said the man.
  
  
• Reported speech: The man said that he drank water after every meal.
  
  
  

5) Present perfect becomes past perfect in reported speech.

• Direct speech: Arpitha said, "The bell has rung"
  
  
• Reported speech: Arpitha said that the ball had rung.
  
  
• Direct speech: The teacher said, " I have a headache."
  
  
• Reported speech: The teacher said that she had a headache.
  
  
  

6) Note the changes from Direct Speech to Reported Speech

Direct speech	Reported speech
I	She/he
We	they
Mine/My	His/hers
Us	Them
Will	Would
Shall	Should
Can	Could
This	That
These	those
Yesterday	The previous day/the year before
Tomorrow	The year after

Example:

• Meera said to Sunil, "Can you give my book to me? You have kept it for a month."
  
  
• Meera asked Sunil if he could give her book to her as he had kept it for a month.
  
  
• Seema told the priest, "I know you. Your prayers have helped my house."
  
  
• Seema told the priest that she knew him and that his prayers had helped her house.
  
  
  

7) In reporting commands and requests the reported speech is introduced by some verb expressing command or request and the imperative mood is changed into the infinitive.

• Direct speech: Ram said to Shyam, "Go away".
  
  
• Reported speech: Ram ordered Shyam to go away.
  
  
  

8) In reporting exclamations the reported speech is introduced by some verbs expressing exclamation or wish.

• Direct speech: "Oh! What a lovely weather!" said the teacher.
  
  
• Reported speech: The teacher exclaimed at the lovely weather.